You must post a clear and direct question in the title. The title may contain two, short, necessary context sentences.
No text is allowed in the textbox. Your thoughts/responses to the question can go in the comments section. more >>

Any post asking for advice should be generic and not specific to your situation alone. more >>

So the Westboro baptist church is planning on picketing the Memorial for the victims of the Aurora shooting tomorrow. Who is coming with me to make a giant wall of people that will keep them from getting anywhere near it?

Kansan Here.
I just want to say, if you plan on making signs for this thing, make signs that are in complete support of the victims and the survivors of the shooting and make absolutely NO REFERENCE to the WBC being there. Don't even acknowledge them. If you start making the memorial service about THEM, they win. I imagine it is also nice for the families and the survivors to be seeing signs of love and support, rather than political statements against some dumb fucking church in Topeka.
I wish I could be there to give my respects. Good luck to you!
edit* I mixed up cities and said they were from Wichita. I'm sorry Wichita. I didn't mean it.

This is so true. There is absolutely a time for joking and having fun with the WBC, but that time would not be now. Save that for when they just picket colleges etc. Right now at this horrible time in some people's lives is the time to ignore them and show support. Make it about the funeral and the lives lost, NEVER make it about the WBC and your counter-protest.

So much agreed. These delusional people thrive on attention and are complete weasels with their lawyers. They get their fame from creating a reaction in people. They are like dumb children raised with the wrong values. If they are ignored they will eventually shut up. If they cross the line and do something radical to try and get more attention, they will fall and fail. My heartfelt thoughts go out to the Aurora community and I hope the presence of the Delusional Worstborough does not get in the way of the respect deserved by the family and loved ones of this horrific tragedy.

THIS! They picket my high school graduation every year. They are LAWYERS and make their money off of people who say or do the wrong things like threats ect. And it's always good to hear from a fellow Kansan! Rock Chalk Jayhawk?

The best way to deal with these guys is to feel sorry for them. And it isn't hard. Have you read the AMA from one of the Phelps boys that escaped? (And I do not mean escaped a prejudiced, absurd school of thought, I mean literally escaped, from the house in the middle of the night, the moment he turned 18, for fear of the physical abuse that is so common in that family.)

Hold up signs saying "I forgive you" or "Your brothers are happier and safer now," "You do not deserve to be abused." Not only will that seriously fuck with the patriarchs, it will also be kind to the children.

He's a Gulf War veteran and avid Harley rider. He fits the bill, ha. He used to do this thing called the "Toy Run" where a bunch of burly bikers dress as Santa and take toys to the Children's Hospital over Christmas. He strapped my big stuffed plush reindeer in his passenger seat. He's awesome.

Edit to add: Here he is doing this. This was before he joined the Patriot Guard and when he was riding his old Honda VTX.

Edit again: Being a veteran and riding a motorcycle were originally traits of the Patriot Guard, but they take anyone's help.

They came to the hospital while I was incredibly sick many years ago - it was my first time in days out of my little quarantined room. Everybody had to wear suits to see me and I felt dehumanized. For a while I was sure I was going to die and they were my first bit of hope and joy. I love those guys. I still have the pictures and a pin that they gave me.

Tell your dad for me to never stop being the amazing man he is, please.

I'm from New York, but I actually emailed them because I saw that the WBC was going to picket. I got in contact with Brad Lewellen, whose the head of the Denver area chapter. This is the email:

"XXXXX, thanks for the heads up.

Just to let you know how the WBC works, they pretty much say they are attending every funeral that either is for a service member or that makes big news across the country. They actually picket at a very small percentage of the funerals they 'say' they are going to attend. When and if they actually plan to attend, they always contact the law
enforcement for that area and request protection, and that is how we know when they will actually show up.

Also, as part of our bylaws, we only attend services when invited by the family to do so. We do this for two reasons. First, because if we just showed up uninvited, we would be no better than the WBC. Second, most of our members are motorcycle riders, and while most of us are big teddy bears, we can still be intimidating, which would be the last thing we want to do to the friends and family of the deceased. All local law enforcement and funeral homes know about us, and let the families know what we do. If they invite us, we talk with the family before the service and let them know exactly what to expect.

Thanks again for the heads up, and we will do what we can if invited."

Bottom line: Someone from one of the families has to make the call! If you are, or someone you know is related to one of the family members, please urge them to make the call!!

We don’t care what you ride or if you ride, what your political views are, or whether you’re a hawk or a dove. It is not a requirement that you be a veteran. It doesn't matter where you’re from or what your income is; you don’t even have to ride. The only prerequisite is Respect.

They may not even go through with it. I would be surprised if they did. These days they seem to just announce pickets of tragedy victims or celebrities to get their names in the press then they just never show. Or they photoshop themselves into a picture of the memorial like they did with Whitney Houston.

They also said they were going to picket Sage Stallone's funeral but it never appeared on their picket schedule and there's no reports of them showing up (the funeral is today).

You need more upvotes, people who are actually planning on going should see this. There would be no violence, positive energy towards the families, and you'd be blocking out the WBC. Pretty damn close to perfection.

I'm not 100% sure but I think any time a tragedy hits, they say it's because the U.S. is too accepting of gays.

The protesting is unique to the WBC but the line of thinking is not; often religious nuts will claim that natural disasters (hurricanes, California fires, etc.) are God's anger over gays, promiscuity, or what not

They've protested at Comic Con before because they thought people idolized super heroes too much, therefore violating the second commandment. This is probably what they're going to base their protest on saying how the people who were killed were probably being punished by God for making Batman their god.

I would give you my kidney, but my brother was born with one. For that reason I do not drink or do drugs. Someday he's gonna need it. I'm gonna give him one of mine, then do a fist bump when we both awake from the procedure. Yeah, I hope it goes down like that anyways...

They're not really protesting anything, they're just looking to piss people off. I believe the people behind the WBC are all lawyers. And if they can get someone pissed off enough to, say, hit one of them, then they'll sue that person. Or if they can get somebody to try and stop them from protesting, they'll sue and say that they're infringing on their First Amendment rights... It's some serious douchebaggery.

That's a common misconception that comes up in every single WBC discussion. I don't want to take the time to find sources for the nth time, but if you look them up or check out other threads on them, you'll see that they're operating at a huge loss, have been disbarred, and so on. Twice in as many days that I've used this quote, but I find it particularly relevant regarding all this Aurora stuff:

They aren't looking for anything logical. They can't be bought, bullied, reasoned, or negotiated with.

No no no thats doing it wrong. when their all in service have all the single gays in america march to their church. then they all drop their pants and we have a massive orgy blockade that they wont be able to get out of because nobody wants to fight through a crowd of nekkid guys. much less if those nekkid guys are humping the shit (no pun intended) out of each other.

If I wasn't a poor college student, I would pack my bags, get a plane ticket to Colorado, drive out to Aurora, and join this wall of people. I absolutely HATE WBC. They give a bad name to Christians everywhere and their protests are deplorable and disgusting.

Earns a spot on the 5 o' clock news. The best way to stop this hate group is to stop giving them attention. They do this for financial reasons, and financial reasons only. If you say or do anything to you, they'll sue.

Their point is for people to get pissed at them and have someone assault them. That way they can clean you out in court. If they don't bait anyone in the first half hour they tend to leave knowing there's no point sitting around after that.

Don't forget your glitter, glitter bombing is not considered assault as long as you toss it to the side of them or up into the air. If its a nice hot day that shit will be caked on their skin for weeks.

Edit: Since people are getting all up in arms about the legality, I'll explain the steps better, considering I've done this twice to them and numerous other anti-gay protesters. When you go to do this, always ask the police presence if its alright to be tossing glitter/confetti around. If you are given the okay, walk/skip around them, never touch a target when doing this. Now the best way is to toss a mix of confetti and glitter above yourself as you skip around, and wear proper attire to not completely cover yourself in glitter, but getting it on yourself makes it less of an attack and gives them a collateral inconveniencing. Also I did not run away each tile so it wasn't a matter of me just getting away. I physically can't run. So anyways take the necessary precautions, communicate with the officers, but never give out your name, out of personal safety and just common sense.

To 'picket' is to stand outside certain events (funerals in their case) with picket signs, shouting insults and acting like fuckheads in general. As to why they do it, they CLAIM it's because they're doing God's will, but most of the family (and the 'church' conists primarily of one family) are lawyers, and they sue anyone who assaults or otherwise infringes on their rights.

The common theory is that they just do these dickish things to incite people to attack them, so the WBC can sue and make lots of money. They're professional trolls, basically.

As other people have said, but I'll reiterate, the WBC has been operating at an almost consistent net-loss since they became notable. While they do sue people, and it is how they get a lot of their funding, they aren't doing it for money, and doing has been very expensive for them.

Why the heads of the family continue to perpetuate their vile douchebaggery is beyond me or anyone.

I think I may have figured out a reason, this could be a stretch, but just stick with me a second.

Before their special brand of protests, a tragedy like this would illicit a response around the country, but usually nothing more than the normal niceties and offering of condolences.

After they started making their mark, the reaction to even a threat of their protests is a huge outpouring of kindness to the point where people will travel several hours to just prevent the WBC from being seen.

As you have pointed out, they are operating at a net-loss, why would they keep doing it? I think it is because they are trolls, but perhaps greater trolls than anyone may have realized; by spewing their vile and hate when people are at their most vulnerable, when they need others, the WBC has pushed us to be better to each other, they have brought us closer together if for nothing more than to defy them.

Could that be what they are doing; did they become the villain for the betterment of mankind?

Or maybe they are just a bunch of religious kooks...anything is possible.

How 'bout the ol' bait and switch? The public announcement would state that the funeral and burial will happen at a cemetery on one side of town, while the friends and family get a private invitation to one at the OTHER side of town. All of this happens during rush hour, so that when the Phelpses get wise, they cannot make it in time. Also, a very gay funeral can be staged at the Phelps cemetery, so they can have something to yell at for an hour or so.

I really don't understand why everyone seems to think it's a good idea to have people dressed up as Batman around victims of this crime... There was a facebook group trying to get Christian Bale to come visit the victims in costume to which I say, I can think of few better ways to invoke PTSD.

Wouldn't it be fucked up if we had a site where we could vote on which crazy organizations should be killed then make a top ten list that we can post so people that plan on killing tons of people have targets?

I've often wondered about this considering all of the military personnel they piss off. I mean you are doing one of the most insulting acts possible to a group of people who are literally trained to kill people. I would be quite paranoid in their situation.

So, maybe I'm being obtuse, but wouldn't it be easier for everyone involved to just ignore them? Who cares what a bunch of hateful idiots think? In the words of The One and Only, "why do we want the assholes to love us?"